


The Right (or Wrong) Idea

by PierceTheFade



Category: Until Dawn
Genre: Angst, Climbing Class, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2015-12-25
Packaged: 2018-05-09 06:32:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5529515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PierceTheFade/pseuds/PierceTheFade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Christmas wouldn't be the same with Hannah and Beth gone, but it was obvious that Josh was trying hard to make it seem like there was a chance it could be. Life is hard enough for Josh as of lately, but the holidays make it even more obvious to him of how alone he is, but his friends won't let him think that. One Christmas party, a lot of drinks, and a drunken confession later leave Chris and Josh confused about their feelings for each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Right (or Wrong) Idea

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas (and happy holidays) to everyone! I hope you enjoy this little Christmas present for everyone who has climbing class in their hearts.

Christmas didn’t feel right that year, and Chris knew everyone felt the same way. To be honest, he didn’t know why Josh wanted them all to still meet for the annual “Washington Christmas party”, when two of the Washingtons wouldn’t even be there to celebrate. Right when Josh sent him the text (with way too many emojis for someone he knew was grieving as much as Josh), Chris knew Josh was trying really hard to pass things off as normal.

As he stood in the foyer of the Washington’s lodge, Chris could hear upbeat Christmas music flowing from deeper within the house. The jolly tunes contrasted the heavy feeling of grief still loitering throughout the home, and a gust of cold wind trailed up his back as Ashley opened the front door behind him.

“Are we the last ones?” Ashley asked, blowing warm air over her hands as she shut the door behind her.

“Sounds like it.” Chris replied as he heard voices coming from down the hall, but whose voices they were, he couldn’t tell. “Yo Josh!” Chris called as he stretched his arm backwards for Ashley to dump his coat on her arm, not looking back but venturing deeper into the house when he felt the weight of her coat settle atop his.

Chris could hear Ashley’s footsteps behind him until the sound of his friend’s voices and the music finally drowned them out. He found Mike, Jess, Matt, and Emily all in the living room, although Sam and Josh were nowhere to be seen.

“Hey you two! ‘Bout time you guys got here!” Sam’s voice came from behind Chris and Ashley. She was carrying a several cans of beer in her arms, and a smile was stretched across her face.

“Hey Sam.” Chris offered her a faint smile which Ashley mirrored as she stole a can of beer from Sam. The others in Sam’s arms shifted, threatening to fall one-by-one until Chris reached forward to steady the pile of cans himself, and Sam offered him a thankful expression.

“Turning up already Ash?” Mike’s voice was slightly teasing from where he sat on the couch and swirled his own half-empty can of beer in his hand.

Ashley rolled her eyes and waved him off as she popped open her own can and patted Chris’s arm lightly as she took a sip of beer. “Thanks for the ride Chris.” She gave him a small smile before plopping down on the couch beside where Emily was seated on Matt’s lap.

“What’s it like outside?” Sam asked Chris as she approached the table in the middle of the circle of chairs and sofas and placed each of the cans on the table, then brushed off her damp hands onto her jeans.

“Fricking cold.” Was all Chris said as he scanned the room and plucked the fuzzy mittens off of his hands.

“Yeah, that’s what happens in the winter.” Sam shrugged, offering to take the coats from Chris’s arms, but he only shook his head in response.

“Nah I’ll put these away, just wanted to see who was here first.” Chris patted the coats and gave the room a final once over before he lowered his voice slightly. “Where’s Josh at by the way?” Josh wasn’t one to be away from the party, especially ones that he hosted. Then again, Josh hadn’t held any parties other than this once since the accident.

Sam nodded, as if she had been expecting the question then pointed upwards before speaking in a quieter tone to match Chris’s. “He said he needed to do ‘stuff’, but, well…you know.” Sam bit her lip gently and tugged at one of the too-long sleeves of her sweater. “I don’t think he’s doing too well Chris.” Her last sentence was a faint whisper, and Chris could barely hear it over the music that one of the others had turned up.

Chris sighed and nodded, “Right – thanks Sam, I’ll go check up on him.” Chris forced a weak smile at Sam before he backed away from the den and quietly travelled up the stairs. The bass of the music caused the wooden floorboards to rumble beneath his feet, and the shadows of snow falling outside cast an irregular pattern to appear across the walls. Most of the doors were closed, as they usually were. There was only one that was barely opened, and that was because there was a Christmas stocking hanging on the doorknob that got caught between the door which kept it from closing all of the way. Chris’s stomach twisted when he recognised Hannah’s room and he threw the two coats onto one of the chairs in the hallway before he approached the door and opened it as quietly as he could.

The door opened silently (much to Chris’s relief), and his shoulders felt heavy when he saw Josh’s unmistakable figure sitting at the edge of Hannah’s bed. He was facing away from the door, and he was hunched over in a way that suggested he was looking at something. Chris was going to knock on the door to indicate his presence, but his hand hovered over its surface before he could hit it. He couldn’t help but notice how different his friend looked when he thought no one was looking.

Josh was always the one to keep his head held high, no matter what the circumstances were. Right now though, Josh’s features were that of someone who had nothing left in them. His body looked like it wanted to collapse in on itself, his hair was sticking up in all different directions instead of the “I-didn’t-try-but-still-look-hot” look he usually wore, and Chris had a feeling that if he looked at Josh’s face he’d see the tell-tale signs of insomnia, clear as day. Chris knew that Josh had mental problems. Hell, he knew first-hand what they did to Josh, and Chris suddenly regretted following through with Josh’s suggestion to offer driving Ashley to the party.

 _Fuck, I should’ve come early for Josh_. Chris mentally kicked himself before knocking his knuckles against the door softly. Josh’s shoulders jumped at the sudden noise and his head shot upwards as he brought the sleeve of his hoodie up to rub at his cheeks.

“Hey bro.” Chris smiled as he leaned against the wall, waiting for Josh to turn and acknowledge him before he intruded him further. He didn’t know what exactly Josh was looking at, but he knew that if he was in Hannah’s room, it was because he was having a bad day and needed to be as close to the remaining memories of his sisters as he could.

“Hey Cochise.” Josh’s voice was a bit husky and he cleared it as he turned to flash Chris a lazy grin. Chris’s chest tightened at the forced quality of the action and he rubbed at the faint shadow of stubble on his jaw as he approached Josh. Josh’s shoulders tensed slightly at the close proximity of Chris’s body so suddenly, and Chris could barely conceal the disappointed frown when he noticed the movement.

“Everyone’s missin’ you downstairs.” Chris rubbed at the drops of water falling onto his forehead from the melting snow in his hair and Josh shrugged carelessly.

“Gotta make ‘em wait for the belle of the ball, y’know?” Josh’s voice was tired, and Chris rested his hand on the dark-haired man’s shoulder. “You brought Ash?” Josh’s eyes lingered on Chris’s hand before he met Chris’s blue ones, and a conflicted expression came over him before his eyes softened into their usual carefree look.

  
Chris nodded, not elaborating further on Ashley as his eyes fell onto the framed picture of the three Washington siblings in Josh’s hands. Josh’s fingers tightened around the metal frame and Chris reached forward to wrap his fingers gently around Josh’s clenched ones, easing his grip on the frame slightly, as his knuckles were beginning to turn white.

“What’re you doing Josh?” Chris whispered, his eyes filling with worry and sadness as Josh’s drained eyes focused onto their locked fingers before they met his.

“Not much right now. Just sittin’, you know?” Josh shrugged, but the strained  sarcastic tone made Chris’s grip on Josh’s hand tighten slightly.

“Josh, c’mon…” Chris looked a Josh almost desperately, searching his best friend’s eyes for the truth he already knew, but Josh wouldn’t let on.

Josh shook his head, hesitating before he placed his other hand over Chris’s and patted it lightly before slipping his hand free of his and placed the picture face-down on the bed’s duvet.

“C’mon Chrissy, they’re gonna get the wrong idea if we’re gone too long.” Josh’s voice lacked the teasing quality he tried to incorporate into the sentence. As he tried to get up, Chris’s arm reached out to grab Josh’s, keeping him in place while Chris looked up at Josh. Josh’s eyes locked on Chris’s, and in that instance he was entranced by the way Chris’s eyes seemed to look deep into his very core. Josh wanted to crawl up into a ball away from Chris’s peering eyes so that he wouldn’t see how broken and twisted he was inside, but he couldn’t force himself to break the moment.

“Chris-“ Josh began and Chris stood up, forcing Josh to look upwards in order to maintain eye contact.

“What wrong idea?” Chris’s voice was barely above a whisper, and he noticed but didn’t register how Josh’s eyes darted from his eyes and downwards to his lips. Josh licked his lips, unconsciously leaning closer to Chris to the point where his nose was close enough to Chris’s neck that he could smell the musky scent of Chris’s cologne on his skin. Josh shut his eyes, losing himself momentarily as the feeling of the bass through the floors coupled with the intoxicating knowledge that Chris was so close to him.

 _So close_. Josh swallowed thickly as he opened his eyes to see Chris’s own eyes were slightly hooded as he stared down at Josh. There was an undeniable layer of uncertainty in Chris’s gaze as he looked at Josh. He couldn’t think straight, or think of why an unspoken attraction pulled Chris towards his best friend.

“Chris, I-“ Josh’s voice had a wanting undertone to it and he stood from the bed, moving to close more of the distance between them. He flinched when the movement caused the picture on the bed to fall loudly to the ground. The spell between the two men seemed to snap, and Josh quickly forced himself backwards as he sucked in a deep breath. Chris’s eyes were unfocused as he stared at Josh, only snapping himself out of his dazed state when Josh cleared his throat.

“C-c’mon Cochise, let’s go downstairs, yeah?” Josh stuttered over his words and patted Chris’s chest as he stumbled slightly over his feet as he tried to maneuver around Chris without getting too close to him. At that moment, Josh didn’t trust himself, and he couldn’t count on himself to keep his wits and his self-control in check. Chris stared after Josh with a confused expression, watching as Josh slipped from the room and listened to his footsteps thud down the steps noisily. Only when Josh was out of the room did Chris realise how fast his heart was beating, or notice how uncomfortable he was in his multiple layers.

“Jesus Christ, what the hell just happened?” Chris whispered under his breath, glancing down at the hand that had just been holding Josh’s and realizing how cold it suddenly felt without his warmth. Chris could faintly hear Josh’s voice from downstairs along with several of the others, and he swallowed thickly when he realised how long the night was going to be. Before venturing downstairs, Chris leaned down to pick up the fallen picture and brush off the little bit of dust that it had picked up from falling down. There was a barely noticeable streak on the glass of the frame, and when Chris squinted his eyes he realised it must have been a tear from Josh when he was holding the picture.

 _Fuck…_ Chris thought as he chewed his lower lip before he carefully placed the picture on the night stand beside Hannah’s bed, then retreated from the room to return to the living room. Jess and Ashley were talking about something on the phone in Jess’s hand, and Mike and Matt seemed to be talking about something related to their classes. Josh had donned a Santa’s hat during his trip to the living room, and he was currently leaning over the couch Sam and Emily were sitting on with a can of beer in his hand as he spoke to them.

“Hey, gang’s all here now,” Mike smirked as Chris entered the room and stood up from his seat on the couch as he rested a hand on Josh’s shoulder. “I’d like to make a toast – to freezing our asses off each Christmas, but at least doing it together.” Mike spoke as he grabbed an unopened beer from the table and tossed it to Chris (being the only one without a drink in his hand), then raised his own can of beer.

Chris caught the beer mid-air and popped open the tab as Jess snickered and lightly swatted the back of Mike’s head. “Nice one Mike, you always need to get your ass involved.”

“What can I say, it’s a nice ass.” Mike shrugged and leaned over to kiss the side of Jess’s head.

“While I’m sure we’d all love to talk about Mike’s ass, I have something I’d like to say as well.” Sam stood up from where she stood and raised her own can of beer. “I know things have been rough lately,” Sam gave a quick, sympathetic look in Josh’s direction who only raised his can of beer in response, “but we’ve been through it all together, no matter how shitty they may have been. So, despite all of the hard times, I know we’re all there for each other if we need it, and here’s to more years where we have each other.” Sam finished her toast and raised her can of beer, signalling everyone to raise their own.

“That was really nice Sam.” Josh patted Sam’s arm before taking a long swig of his beer, then fell backwards onto the armchair beside the couch. His legs were thrown over one armrest and his head on the other as he swirled his can of beer in his hand. Chris leaned against the wall, occasionally sipping his beer as he listened to the various conversations flow throughout the room, but found that he couldn’t pay attention to them for too long without having his attention wander to where Josh lay in his chair. As the night dragged on, the number of empty beer cans littering the floor by Josh’s chair increased, and the Santa hat he wore was moved from his head to cover most of his face.

Chris tried to limit how much he was drinking. He was expecting that he’d need to be the one to drive Ashley back home, but every time he thought about leaving Josh alone after everyone else left made him take another long drink of beer. He knew it was getting obvious how much he “accidentally” kept looking at Josh, and it got to the point where near the end of the night, Sam had pulled Chris into the kitchen to speak with him away from everyone else.

“Chris, how much have you had to drink?” Sam asked once the door to the kitchen was closed.

Chris shrugged, fiddling with the lid of his can until he pulled it off and twisted the metal tab between his fingers. “’M sober enough to drive.” He muttered, rubbing his eyes underneath his glasses and Sam sighed as she took the can of beer from his hand and set it down on the counter.

“Chris, be serious. You may not be outrageously tipsy, but you probably shouldn’t be driving.”

“Can’t not drive, I’m Ash’s ride.” Chris sighed and shook his head.

Sam rolled her eyes and hit his arm lightly with a small smile, “Dummy, I can drive Ash home. I’m already Mike and Jess’s ride since they came to get smashed and make out.” Chris’s eyes took a moment to focus fully on Sam and he crossed his arms in response.

“I couldn’t ask you to do that Sam.”

“Yeah, I know. That’s why I’m telling you I’ll do it. God you’re so stubborn.” Sam shook her head and leaned over to the sink so she could dump the rest of her beer down the drain. There was something about that plan that didn’t seem to click in Chris’s mind, and he only realised it just before Sam left the room.

“Wait, what do I do for a ride then?” Chris asked, and felt like a complete idiot for doing so based on the look Sam gave him.

“You’re kidding right? Just stay here, it’s not like it’s a new thing for you, plus I’m sure Josh will hardly turn down having some company tonight.” Sam’s tone was gentler at the end of her sentence, and she patted Chris’s arm encouragingly when she saw a frown flash across Chris’s face. “You saw him out there Chris, he’s miserable. You know him better than anyone, and I think right now he needs someone that understands him and knows how to make him happy.”

Chris opened his mouth to reply but closed it when Sam gave him an almost pleading look. Her eyes were silently begging him to stay behind for Josh, and if Chris was honest with himself, he knew he wanted to be there for Josh.

“Yeah, alright.” Chris conceded and pulled Sam into a quick hug before releasing her and letting her disappear back into the living room. The door was just about to close before it swung back open, revealing Ashley’s figure as she walked through the doorway and into the kitchen.

“Hey Chris.” Ashley greeted with a yawn, smiling lazily as she leaned against the counter across from Chris.

“Hey Ash.” Chris replied while he opened the fridge to grab a bottle of water and took a long drink from it before turning to look at Ashley. “What’s up?”

Ashley’s face clouded over and her lips pursed, as if she was deep in thought as she looked at Chris. All of a sudden, her face cleared and she dug her hand into her pocket as she approached Chris and stopped a few feet in front of him. Her cheeks were flushed, and Chris couldn’t tell if it was all due to the alcohol, but he knew based on the bleary look in her eyes that it was a large contributor to it. Ashley’s hand slipped free from her pocket and she dangled her fingers upwards, revealing the tiny mistletoe plant she held between her manicured nails.

“You know what they say about mistletoe, Chris?” Ashley’s eyes focused on Chris’s and she rested one hand on the counter behind him, leaning towards him while she kept the plant slightly above Chris’s eye-level.

Chris bit his lip uncertainly; up until recently, Chris probably would’ve been ecstatic about the turn of events, but lately, something hadn’t felt right between them. The initial exhilaration he felt around her had faded, and he couldn’t help but think back on the feeling of nervous excitement he’d felt with Josh only a couple of hours before. The fact that he didn’t feel it there with Ashley caused his gut to twist as Ashley leaned closer towards him, her eyes fluttering shut as she swayed gently in front of him.

“Ash, you’re drunk.” Chris spoke gently as he rested his hands on her shoulders.

“Not that drunk.” Ashley mumbled then reached upwards with one hand to stroke Chris’s hair with a dazed look in her eyes.

“Ashley...” Chris’s voice was tired and he grabbed her hand and held it a reasonable distance from his face.

Ashley pouted and leaned towards Chris, wrapping the arm Chris wasn’t holding around Chris’s neck and tickling his cheek with the mistletoe. “C’mon Chris, make my **Chris** tmas wish come true?” Ashley slurred with a giggle as she laughed at her own joke.

“Ashley-“ Chris sighed, preparing to untangle himself from her arms but stopping when he heard the door to the kitchen swing open. Chris’s body froze when he saw a familiar head of dark brown hair over Ashley’s, and his eyes met with Josh’s for a split second, revealing a mixture of disappointment, sadness, and anger that flashed across his face before he ducked his head and pulled the Santa hat over his eyes.

“Sorry to interrupt the love birds, but we were out of beer.” Josh spoke a bit too cheerily considering the flickers of emotions Chris had just seen in him, and Chris quickly uncoiled himself from Ashley’s embrace, earning him a soft noise of complaint from Ashley.

“Josh, it’s not – we’re not–" Chris stumbled over his words, unsure why he felt like he needed to explain himself to Josh, but he couldn’t think of anything else he could do with the shame and embarrassment burning a hole in his chest.

Josh laughed shortly as he crossed the room, keeping a wide berth from Ashley and Chris as he opened the fridge and grabbed a couple of cold bottles of beer.  
“Hey bro, what you do ain’t my business. Don’t stop on my account.” Josh either didn’t try, or failed to disguise the bitter tone in his voice as he tipped his hat at the two standing by the counter. “Merry fucking Christmas, right?.”

Chris bit his lip as he watched Josh disappear through the door and back into the living room, and he heard Ashley scoff quietly from behind him. “What’s got him so salty?” She muttered, tossing the forgotten mistletoe onto the counter.

Chris bit back the snarky remark begging to be let out and shook his head as he left the kitchen quietly, ignoring Ashley’s complaints behind him that were silenced once the door closed behind him. His eyes scanned the living room in search of Josh, but all he could see was Matt and Emily curled up on the ground in front of one of the couches and Mike and Jess were huddled together on one of the couches speaking in hushed whispers. Chris’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion and he approached Sam who was fiddling with the fireplace with a metal poker.

“Hey Sam, where’d Josh go?” Chris asked absentmindedly as he continued to scan the room, as if he had simply looked over Josh (which, in reality, was highly unlikely).

“Said he needed some air. He sounded kind of upset, and you know how he gets when he’s drunk.” Sam didn’t look away from the fireplace as Chris thanked her and strode out of the room towards the back of the house where the terrace overlooking the frozen pond was. When it was warmer, he and Josh would sit outside while talking about seemingly meaningless things, but when it got colder they usually abandoned the spot until spring came around. It was the first place that came to Chris’s mind when he thought about where Josh would be. Sure enough, when Chris bursted through the back door leading outside he saw Josh sitting on the porch with an opened bottle of beer between his legs.

Despite the fact that Josh couldn’t have been outside for more than five minutes, his nose and cheeks were stained red from the wind whipping against them, and there was already clumps of snowflakes clinging to his hair. Josh didn’t even look at Chris as he walked in front of him; he just continued staring into the forest with a blank look on his face. Guilt ate away at Chris’s insides, and he stuffed his hands into his pockets to shield them from the cold as he thought about what he could or should say.

“What you saw in there, it wasn’t anything, you know?” Chris said lamely and Josh smirked but still didn’t look at Chris.

“Big deal if it is, right? You’ve been pining over Ashley for God knows how long now, it’s about time you got somewhere with her.” The words tasted wrong on Josh’s tongue, but he still forced them from his lips which earned him a frown from Chris.

“Your reaction says otherwise.” Chris pointed out and Josh rolled his eyes.

“Go back inside Chris.” Josh tried to shut down any more conversation, instead favouring taking another drink from his beer and sighing as it burned his throat.

“Fucking hell Josh, what in God’s name has you so pissed off?” Chris’s voice held all of the frustration he was feeling, and it was only then that Josh finally tore his eyes away from the trees and looked up at Chris.

“You wanna know Cochise?” Josh’s lips stretched into a drunk smile and he placed his drink down then rested his elbows on the porch and leaned backwards on them. “I’m sad, I’m drunk, and I’m so fucking in love with you, but you love someone else.” Chris’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open as he stared at Josh who only scoffed at Chris’s open-mouthed stare. “Oh come on, I don’t hide it that well.” Josh muttered and shook his head.

That was just it, he didn’t hide it well. Chris wouldn’t lie and say that he hadn’t ever wondered if Josh was at least a little bit gay (and he already knew he himself swung both ways), but it never really occurred to him that Josh would be genuinely interested in Chris. Sure they played around with the idea, but he never thought there was anything to any of their jokes. Thinking back on it now, the lengthy periods of eye contact and the lingering touches that lasted a bit too long to be just friendly should’ve tipped Chris off. Standing there at that moment, finally knowing the truth though left Chris shocked, and he floundered for words for several moments until Josh grew tired of the silence and broke it himself.

“Y’know what though? It’s your god damn loss Chris. I know I’m a fine piece of ass.” Josh smile twisted sadly and he drained the last bit of beer from his bottle before letting it roll off of the steps and into the snow.

“I’m a big boy, I’ll get over this little spat and we can go back to being Bonnie and fucking Clyde.” Josh stood up and turned away from Chris, grabbing onto the railing for support when he felt his balance waver.

Chris didn’t know what finally broke him; if it was the exhausted tone of Josh’s voice, the wounded expression he’d given Chris, or just the fact that he knew that if he let Josh go, he’d never have a chance like this again, but all of them probably influenced him when he reached forward and grabbed Josh’s wrist as he turned away.

“Chris, I’m not in the fu-“ Josh began to speak bitterly but was silenced as Chris tugged on his arm and turned him to crash their lips together. Josh’s eyes widened and he was frozen in shock, but his body worked faster than his mind as he quickly reciprocated the bruising kiss with a deep groan. Chris moved his cold fingers to cup Josh’s face and shut his eyes in ecstasy as the uncertainty of his actions vanished and the world became only him and Josh.

Their lips broke away with a loud sigh from both of them, and when Chris opened his eyes he saw that Josh’s were looking at him with an expression of hungry desire that caused Chris’s stomach to clench harshly. Chris’s face was flushed a deep red, and he moved to release his hold on Josh as he began to realise what he actually did. Josh watched hesitation fill Chris’s eyes and could feel his fingertips begin to slip from his face. He growled in the back of his throat before he sprang, backing Chris up against the railing and caging him in with his arms on either side of him.

“Do you realize how long I’ve wanted to do that?” Josh asked in a husky voice, not giving Chris the chance to answer as he looped an arm around Chris’s neck and pressed their bodies flush against each other. Chris’s knees buckled slightly and he was relieved that he had the support of the railing and Josh to keep him from falling, because that would be seriously lame. Chris’s hands bunched themselves in Josh’s shirt, and it was a wonder that their body heat kept them from feeling the cold in the air. His fingertips grazed a sliver of the exposed skin of Josh’s sides and Josh shivered before pressing his knee between Chris’s legs while he deepened the kiss.

Chris moaned at the faint contact Josh’s knee offered him, and he didn’t even have to think about it as his lips parted, welcoming Josh’s tongue into his mouth and practically melting into his arms when he felt Josh tug on his lower lip gently.

“You can’t give me just a little taste of that Cochise.” Josh’s breath tickled Chris’s cheeks, and he could faintly smell mint behind the overwhelming smell and taste of beer on Josh’s lips. Josh’s face inched away from Chris’s, earning him a choked whine from Chris as he pressed his lips against the pulse point on Chris’s neck.  
“Doesn’t seem like you want just a taste either.” Josh murmured against Chris’s skin and sucked harshly at the sensitive skin there. Chris moaned loudly, unconsciously grinding his crotch down on Josh’s knee which elicited a moan from both of them.

“Shit – Josh, dammit.” Chris choked out as Josh continued to rotate between sucking and kissing the spot on Chris’s neck until he was satisfied with the bright red mark he’d left behind. Chris’s lips were red, and his eyes were filled with desire and something else Josh wasn’t ready to delve into, but still sent a jolt through his chest and caused him to slow down his desperate actions. Chris was still grinding on his leg, a blissed out expression on his face and Josh cupped his cheek gently to tilt his face downwards to look into his eyes. Josh couldn’t take the longing look in Chris’s eyes as they met his, and he pressed their lips together in a much sweeter kiss than those before it as he felt his heart rate begin to slow.

Chris forced himself to halt his movements against Josh’s body, ignoring the heat that curled in his stomach as he stroked Josh’s cheek gently while trying to catch his breath. They were both breathing harshly, causing puffs of air to swirl between them while Chris carded his other hand through Josh’s hair. Josh’s eyes lulled shut and he moaned in the back of his throat as Chris pressed a chaste kiss on his forehead.

“As much as I’d like to continue this,” Chris cleared his throat, “We’re both way too drunk for this, and I want us to talk about this before we go any further.” Despite the fact that kissing and getting straight to the action sounded incredibly appealing and caused his blood to boil in his veins, Chris knew that it would be better for both of them to have their wits to themselves.

Josh hummed in agreement, opening his eyes lazily as he began to feel the effects of the overindulgence of alcohol take him over. “You’re stayin’ over, right?” Josh mumbled.

“Wouldn’t wanna be anywhere else” Chris smiled as he stroke Josh’s cheek then untangled themselves, trying to keep his hands to himself as Josh’s slid over his body slowly before they settled in the pockets of his own jeans. There was a wolfish smile on his face that Chris raised his eyebrow at in question, and Josh leaned forward to tug the collar of his shirt down to reveal the large red bruise blossoming at the base of Chris’s throat.

“Merry Christmas Cochise.” Josh whispered into Chris’s ear with a faint tug of his earlobe between his teeth. Chris’s eyes rolled shut and he shivered noticeably which caused Josh’s lips to break out in the first genuine smile of the night.

“Merry Christmas Josh.” Chris heart fluttered at the sight of Josh’s smile and he adjusted the collar of his shirt so no one but he and Josh would know what was there. Despite the fact that it was concealed, the hickie still burned hot against his skin and he could sense the smugness radiating off of Josh’s body.

“C’mon, they’re gonna get the wrong idea if we’re gone too long.” Josh winked at Chris, trailing his hand down Chris’s arm before settling at his hand and intertwining their fingers together and tugging Chris into the house with him


End file.
